Historical method: a recorded belief or accusation is not independent proof of the supernatural event described.
A memorable translation
“Good walkers” is a compact English rendering of the name. But a gloss does not explain all historical uses of the term or establish a formal institution with membership rules.
Who uses the label?
A careful reader should track whether the label comes from an accused person, another witness, an official document or a historian. Self-identification and hostile classification are not interchangeable.
Modern naming
Benandanti.org uses the word as a historical research subject and a metaphor for protective inquiry. Modern usage here is an editorial choice; it does not claim inheritance of a sixteenth-century office or spiritual authority.
Source and revision record
- Santarelli and Weber, Benandanti, EreticopediaScholarly reference · Survey of agrarian, funerary and therapeutic strands, with discussion of scholarly disagreement.
- Trial transcripts: Paolo Gasparutto and Battista Moduco, 1575–1581 (translated excerpt via University of Washington)Edited translation of primary record · A modern publication of translated trial testimony, not a facsimile of the original manuscript. Copyright may apply.